Among the large number of multiple compartment containers in the prior art, there appears to be no single container combining certain desired features. A first such feature enables a user to add liquid separately to two separated and isolated liquid-receiving compartments, ascertain by visual inspection the respective levels the proportional volume relationship, very accurately adjust one of the levels to yield a predetermined volume relationship and blend the liquids by tilting the container to move them along a third superposed mixing compartment to produce the desired composite for a specific application. A second container feature includes two handles for carrying or manipulating the container. Another feature is mounting devices with which the container can be mounted on a vehicle or other stable platform. Yet another feature is a second mounting device with which an auxiliary container can be mounted "piggy-back" on the main container, and yet another feature includes triple-sealed outlets.
A container of the general type to which the present invention pertains, but which lacks certain of the features of the present invention, is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,948,105, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
An important use for the proportioning and mixing graduated container herein described is the production of a blend of a two-cycle lubricating oil and gasoline at the proper ratio for burning as a fuel in two-stroke cycle (two-cycle) internal combustion engines. Such engines, because of their relatively greater power output per unit of piston displacement, are widely used for powering racing and other high-performance motorcycles, recreational vehicles such as snowmobiles and jet-skis, hand-held power tools, outboard motor assemblies and similar applications. Various two-cycle engines require different ratios of oil and gasoline, and it is very important that a particular two-cycle engine have exactly the proper ratio in the fuel supplied to it. For a given engine, the combined gasoline and oil blend is known as premix.
Improper fuel-oil mixtures are a principal cause of operating problems with two-cycle engines. If insufficient oil is present in the mixture the moving engine parts will overheat and seize; if excess oil is present, such adverse effects as engine smoking, sparkplug fouling and loss of power quickly result.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved graduated container for proportioning and mixing various liquids, especially gasoline and two-cycle lubricating oil, wherein the container combines the desirable features set out above.